Contemporary Family and it's effect on School Settings Essay

Contemporary Family and it's effect on School Settings - Essay Example There are three types of relationships. The first is the relationship between parents and children; the second among related nuclear families such as adult siblings; the third across family members over a wide span of time, intergenerational relations. Terms like â€Å"family values† refer to one or several of these separate family relationships. The relationship between parents and children is often looked at and of great importance. There are few specific activities such as productive activities which involve the nurturing, training, and caring for the dependent children from birth onward. Few responsibilities are of greater importance than that of parenting, of providing for the healthy development of the child in mental, social, economic, and many other dimensions. A grown up person chose to have children because of the satisfaction they get, and the parental expenditures of time and effort, of money and hassle, of patience and support are all part of the productive activi ties of parenthood.

The Intersection of Nature and Culture Essay Example for Free

The Intersection of Nature and Culture Essay Semiotics is a discipline which stems from the work and theories of American logician C. S. Peirce and the French linguist Ferdinand de Saussure. The idiom originates from the Greek word seemeiootikee, which denotes the study of signs, what they represent and signify, and how human beings act, interact and think in their universe. This branch of learning and understanding can be best described as a system of many communication theories and techniques which can be viewed as pieces of a puzzle. When these fragments are connected and pieced together, they make visible, the intricate design of human interaction and interpersonal communication. Semiotics lies intermediary between philosophy and philology and is nothing less than an objectification, or self-expression, or interpretation and the formation and comprehension of meaning. This area of study is a combination between scientific discipline and a world-view. Semiotics is an enormously broad approach to understanding such matters as meaning, cognition, culture, behavior, even life itself. At the heart of this discipline lies the notion of sign. A sign, according to Charles S. Peirce, widely acknowledged to be one of the seminal thinkers about semiotics, is something which stands to somebody for something in some respect or capacity. It is the study of signs and symbols as elements of communicative behavior and the analysis of systems of communication. These signs take the form of words, images, sounds, acts or objects, but have no genuine meaning and become signs only when we invest them with meaning- nothing is a sign unless it is interpreted and brings about some form of meaning. Understanding semiology assists in the true understanding of ones self, others, and how we view the world around us. Inherently, humans are reactors. Because it is human nature to act, or react toward people, items, and instances on the basis of preconceived meanings that have been assigned, it is beneficial to understand that each sign or symbol will have a different meaning to each individual it is presented to. Because of communication filters and barriers (which can also be signs and symbols) no message is ever received the exact way it is sent. (See Appendix A)  Similarly, every sign encountered can be decoded and interpreted differently depending on preconceived notions, culture and personal experience. A signifier may induce many different interpretations of the signified (See Appendix B and D). This theory of signs and symbolism is divided into branches including pragmatics, semantics, and syntactics. Pragmatics is the branch of semiotics which deals with the causal and other relations between words, expressions, or symbols and their users. It can be an analysis of language in terms of the situational context within which utterances are made, including the knowledge and beliefs of the speaker and the relation between speaker and listener. Semantics is the study of the relationship between words and meanings. The field of semantics has three fundamental concerns: the relations of words to the objects denoted by them, the relations of words to the interpreters of them, and, in symbolic logic, the formal relations of signs to one another semantics is concerned with such issues as meaning and truth, meaning and thought, and the relation between signs and what they mean. Syntactics is the branch of semiotics dealing with the formal properties of language and systems of symbols. Innis proposes that, fundamentally these areas of thought deal with meanings and messages in all their forms and in all their contexts. There are three ways in which the sign can stand for its object: as icon, index or symbol. An icon is a sign that stands for an object by resembling it, not merely visually, but by any means. An icon makes a connection by similitude. Included in this category of sign are obvious examples like pictures, maps and diagrams and some not so obvious ones like algebraic expressions and metaphors. Indexes refer to their objects, not by virtue of any similarity relation, but by an actual causal link between the sign and its object: smoke is an index of fire. The relation between the sign and its object is substantial in that the sign and object have something in common; that is, the object affects the sign. It is physically connected to the object. Symbols refer to their objects by virtue of a law, rule or convention. Words, propositions and texts are obvious examples in that no similarity or causal link is suggested in the relation between, for example,  the word horse and the object to which it refers. In this category especially the potential arbitrary character of signs comes to the foreground. If symbols need bear no similarity or causal link to their object, then the signs can be considered by the sign user in unlimited ways, independent of any physical relationship to the sign user. The convention between recognizing a sign and the meaning which is provoked is affected by perception and experience. What appears to be a complex ideology is really very simple. Semiotics is everywhere, in every part of daily life. Humans recognize patterns of information and organize them to generate meaning. The sign is the signifier, and what speaks to us is the signified. We see a sign, internalize it, and create meaning. The Semantic Triangle, (Appendix E) shows the indirect relationship between symbols and their referents. Some signs are culturally universal and convey similar meaning in individuals (Appendix F). Some signs act as instructions or directions, and guide or restrict behaviors. For instance, if a sign with a cigarette encompassed by a red circle and a bar through the middle is on display in a business it is understood that there is no smoking on the premises. This image has predetermined meaning. Some signs act as reminders. An image in of a young child in a magazine may serve as a sign for an aging mother and the signified may be a sense of sadness as her children have grown and moved on. The perception of meaning and the ability making sense out of the information that is being transmitted by these signs is an essential element of human communication. The study and application of semiotics is the frame work for representing meaning. Reality is encoded with signs and symbols and life is but to decode and find meaning. We seem to be a species driven by a desire to make meaning: above all, we are surely homo-significans meaning-makers within which signs are meaningful units taking the form of words, images, sounds, acts or objects. Such things have no intrinsic meaning and become signs only when we invest them with meaning. And it is this meaning-making which is at the heart of the concerns of semiotics. The fact that humans can consume and interpret signs which are arbitrary and have no tangible existence in their immediate experience is what makes thought possible and is distinctly human. Ideas can be brought to mind and manipulated without being directly experienced. Meanings can be expressed in various ways, through a variety of sign systems: language, music, gesture and by many other vehicles. The meaning that is found within these signs creates the psychological and emotional environment we live in. Signs can also communicate ideological or connotative meaning, and perpetuate the dominant values of society. Aristotle claimed that a thing either is or it isnt. Semiotics is the arbitrator of this existence and because things can be decoded and deciphered differently by each individual, there is much grey area between the is and the isnt. By being aware of the way we use and interpret signs and symbols, and understanding the effects of these things on communication and interaction we are increasing and recognizing cognitive complexity so as to better approximate the halftones of this symbolically mediated real world. The meanings of signs and symbols are mediated by our experience and understanding of the world can never be the same for each person. Thomas Sebeok proposes that semiotics lies at the intersection of nature and culture. It is human nature to see and interpret signs but many of the signs we see are culturally adopted. However, we create our world of meaning by interpreting signs as we interact with objects in our environment and by personal experience. Having an understanding of Semiotics and its branches can help one to better understand their own psyche, as interpreting and finding meaning has much to do with self-disclosure. It also brings an understanding of others into the framework. The concept of semiotics and the ability to comprehend the notions can become a fortunate thing and be advantageous to the ability to communicate interpersonally, connect on a deeper level, and interact with other people and the world around References Barthes, Elements of Semiology (1967); A. A. Berger, Signs in Contemporary Culture: An Introduction to Semiotics (1988). Buchler, J. (Ed.). (1955). Philosophical Writings of Peirce. New York: Dover Innis, R. (Ed.). Semiotics: An Introductory Anthology. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.1983 Sebeok, T. Contributions to the Doctrine of Signs.Lisse: Peter de Ridder Press.1976. Unknown, Steps towards Evolutionary Semiotics. Semiotica 132, 3/4 (317-342).2000

Information Technology In Insurance Industry Commerce Essay

Information Technology In Insurance Industry Commerce Essay Insurance in India can be traced back to the Vedas. For instance, yogakshema, the name of Life Insurance Corporation of Indias corporate headquarters, is derived from the Rig Veda. The term suggests that a form of community insurance was prevalent around 1000 BC and practiced by the Aryans. Burial societies of the kind found in ancient Rome were formed in the Buddhist period to help families build houses, protect widows and children. Bombay Mutual Assurance Society, the first Indian life assurance society, was formed in 1870. Other companies like Oriental, Bharat and Empire of India were also set up in the 1870-90s. It was during the swadeshi movement in the early 20th century that insurance witnessed a big boom in India with several more companies being set up. As these companies grew, the government began to exercise control on them. The Insurance Act was passed in 1912, followed by a detailed and amended Insurance Act of 1938 that looked into investments, expenditure and management of these companies funds. By the mid-1950s, there were around 170 insurance companies and 80 provident fund societies in the countrys life insurance scene. However, in the absence of regulatory systems, scams and irregularities were almost a way of life at most of these companies. As a result, the government decided nationalizes the life assurance business in India. The Life Insurance Corporation of India was set up in 1956 to take over around 250 life companies. HISTORY OF INDIAN INSURANCE MARKET Insurance has a long history in India. Life Insurance in its current form was introduced in 1818 when Oriental Life Insurance Company began its operations in India. General Insurance was however a comparatively late entrant in 1850 when Triton Insurance company set up its base in Kolkata. History of Insurance in India can be broadly bifurcated into three eras: a) Pre Nationalisation b) Nationalisation and c) Post Nationalisation. Life Insurance was the first to be nationalized in 1956. Life Insurance Corporation of India was formed by consolidating the operations of various insurance companies. General Insurance followed suit and was nationalized in 1973. General Insurance Corporation of India was set up as the controlling body with New India, United India, National and Oriental as its subsidiaries. The process of opening up the insurance sector was initiated against the background of Economic Reform process which commenced from 1991. For this purpose Malhotra Committee was formed du ring this year who submitted their report in 1994 and Insurance Regulatory Development Act (IRDA) was passed in 1999. Resultantly Indian Insurance was opened for private companies and Private Insurance Company effectively started operations from 2001. PRESENT SCENARIO OF INSURANCE INDUSTRY    India with about 200 million middle class household shows a huge untapped potential for players in the insurance industry. Saturation of markets in many developed economies has made the Indian market even more attractive for global insurance majors. The insurance sector in India has come to a position of very high potential and competitiveness in the market.   Indians, have always seen life insurance as a tax saving device, are now suddenly turning to the private sector that are providing them new products and variety for their choice. Consumers remain the most important centre of the insurance sector. After the entry of the foreign players the industry is seeing a lot of competition and thus improvement of the customer service in the industry. Computerisation of operations and updating of technology has become imperative in the current scenario. Foreign players are bringing in international best practices in service through use of latest technologies The insurance agents still remain the main source through which insurance products are sold. The concept is very well established in the country like India but still the increasing use of other sources is imperative. At present the distribution channels that are available in the market are listed below. Direct selling Corporate agents Group selling Brokers and cooperative societies Banc assurance Customers have tremendous choice from a large variety of products from pure term (risk) insurance to unit-linked investment products. Customers are offered unbundled products with a variety of benefits as riders from which they can choose. More customers are buying products and services based on their true needs and not just traditional money back policies, which is not considered very appropriate for long-term protection and savings. There is lots of saving and investment plans in the market. However, there are still some key new products yet to be introduced e.g. health products.    The rural consumer is now exhibiting an increasing propensity for insurance products. A research conducted exhibited that the rural consumers are willing to dole out anything between Rs.3,500 and Rs.2,900 as premium each year. In the insurance the awareness level for life insurance is the highest in rural India, but the consumers are also aware about motor, accidents and cattle insurance. In a study conducted by MART the results showed that nearly one third said that they had purchased some kind of insurance with the maximum penetration skewed in favor of life insurance. The study also pointed out the private companies have huge task to play in creating awareness and credibility among the rural populace. The perceived benefits of buying a life policy range from security of income bulk return in future, daughters marriage, childrens education and good return on savings, in that order, the study adds. FEATURES OF INSURANCE INDUSTRY Insurance Policy India provides the clients with the details required for the coverage in the policy, date of commencement of the policy and their adopting organizations. It plays a important role in the Indian insurance sector. The Insurance Policy India is regulated by certain acts like the Insurance Act (1938), the Life Insurance Corporation Act(1956), General Insurance Business Nationalization) Act(1972), Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority IRDA) Act(1999). The insurance policy determines the covers against risks, sometime opens investment options with insurance companies setting high returns and also informs about the tax benefits like the LIC in India. There are two types of insurance covers: 1. Life insurance 2. General insurance Life insurance this sector deals with the risks and the accidents affecting the life of the customer. Alongside, this insurance policy also offers tax planning and investment returns. There are various types of life Insurance Policy India: Endowment Policy Whole Life Policy Term Life Policy Money-back Policy Joint Life Policy Group Insurance Policy General Insurance this sector covers almost everything related to property, vehicle, cash, household goods, health and also ones liability towards others. The major segments covered under general Insurance Policy India are: Home Insurance Health Insurance Motor Insurance Travel Insurance NAME OF THE PLAYER MARKET SHARE (%) Name of the Player Market share (%) LIFE INSURANCE CORPORATION OF INDIA 82.3 ICICI PRUDENTIAL 5.63 BIRLA SUN LIFE 2.56 BAJAJ ALLIANZ 2.03 SBI LIFE INSURANCE 1.80 HDFC STANDARD 1.36 TATA AIG 1.29 MAX NEW YARK 0.90 AVIVA 0.79 OM KOTAK MAHINDRA 0.51 ING VYSYA 0.37 MET LIFE 0.21 SWOT ANALYSIS Strength Risk protection is provided by this sector only. Insurance having currently good market. Tax exemption. The variety of products is increasing. Insurance to build close relationship with customers. Good amount of RD into insurance 200 million households waiting for householders insurance Weakness Unable to convenience the people about the products. Insurance companies instability Limited working capital Products or services similar to competitors. Higher tax nets for the middle class Opportunities Technology is improving paperless transaction are available. Busy life, customer need flexible and customizable policies. Like mobile banking mobile insurance could be a hit. New innovations in technology-measuring weather variables. Threats Weather cycles. New substitute product emerging. Increasing expenses and lower profit margins with hard on the smaller agencies and insurance companies. Government regulations on issues like health care terrorism can quickly change the direction on insurance. USE OF INRORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN INSURANCE INDUSTRY The present scenario is such that the products sold with the help of Internet. The technological advancement is such that force the companies to take such steps. Still the full-fledged use of Internet is not done in our country. As suggestion earlier the Internet based life insurance will help the companies to reduce the transaction cost and time. At the time it can improve the quality of service to its customers, which is the mission of the company. Internet can be an effective medium for educating the consumers about insurance. It serves as a single window for disseminating product, process and procedural information to the consumers. Product development and target marketing through the Internet: with increase in the number of insurance companies there will be a need for market segmentation and subsequently product designed for each of them. In such a scenario Internet can be a effective channel for pushing product specific information to a particular market segment. Consumer feedback about a particular product as well as suggestions for different types or covers can also be generated through the Internet 1. E-business insurance in India: The Internet has played a vital role in transforming the business of the 21st century. Computers are now being used extensively for creating a storing data, information with the help of complex and sophisticated technological tools in every kind of business. This change having been widely accepted, the advantages are numerous such as fast processing improved. Efficiency, cost reduction among several other benefits. 2. Maintaining the database:- The most important factor that is affecting the insurance industry is the marinating the database of the customers. The insurance industry having a huge list of the customers. In order to maintain it in manual format it is really the work of stupidity. With the change in time the computers has taken the work of this things. Thus with the development of the technology it has becoming possible to maintain such huge database very easily. A person can switch over to the computer and get the details of the customer very easily. Thus maintaining the database has really become easy due to the development in technology. 3. E-Commerce in the Indian Insurance Industry With the advent of the Internet, online processes are replacing conventional models in our society. The greatest impact in online technology has been achieved by e-commerce. E-commerce is attractive both to buyers and sellers as it reduces search costs for buyers and insventory costs for sellers. In this paper we investigate the impact of e-commerce on the insurance industry in India. The recent growth of Internet infrastructure and introduction of economic reforms in the insurance sector have opened up the monopolistic Indian insurance market to competition from foreign alliances. We study the evolving scenario in the insurance industry in India and identify the features of online insurance that improve the conventional insurance model and thus, makes it more attractive for the Indian insurance industry to go online. TECHNOLOGY TREND IN INSURANCE MARKET Computerization: Initially, in the late 1950s the insurance companies used Unit Record Machines (Electro Magnetic Machines) to process data punched into cards. Computers were introduces in the mid 1960s and by the 1980s the Unit Phased Machines were phased out and the entire process was computerized. This brought about greater efficiency and quick service delivery Internet: Today, the internet has completely changed the service delivery process. Internet is today used to even sell insurance policies. Internet is, in fact, proving to be one of the widely used distribution networks for selling insurance policies. Also internet is used for sending premium notices to policy holders through e-mails Companies like LIC (www.licindia.com), ICICI (www.iciciprudential.com) all have websites from which people can get the information about their products, prices, various schemes, and lots of other information. People can also purchase the product through this website. Electronic Clearance Service (ECS): Almost all the big organizations today provide the ECS facility to its customers. A policy holder having an account in any bank which is a member of the local clearing house can opt for ECS debit to pay premiums. The advantage here is that once the option is exercised, the policy holder need not visit a branch for paying the premium or collecting the receipts. On the day indicated by the policy holder, the premium amount will be directly debited to the bank account of the policyholder and the receipt will be issued by the designated branch office. Call Centres and SMS services: Almost all the insurance companies have their own call centres which cater to the phone based queries of the policyholders. This service is 247 and they have the Interactive Voice Response (IVR) systems at all the branches INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INTRODUCED IN LIC LIC has been one of the pioneering organizations in India who introduced the leverage of Information Technology in servicing and in their business. Data pertaining to almost 10 crores policies is being held on computers in LIC. We have gone in for relevant and appropriate technology over the years. 1964 saw the introduction of computers in LIC. Unit Record Machines introduced in late 1950s were phased out in 1980s and replaced by Microprocessors based computers in Branch and Divisional Offices for Back Office Computerization. Standardization of Hardware and Software commenced in 1990s. Standard Computer Packages were developed and implemented for Ordinary and Salary Savings Scheme (SSS) Policies. INSURANCE SOFTWARE The online Insurance Management System Software solution is a fully automated and integrated policy processing system for both personal and commercial insurance carriers. It is a scalable, reliable, and cost-effective solution for carrying out all business-critical insurance processing functions Insurance Software Solutions provider for all segments of the insurance community and insurance product management. The web based Insurance Management System Software solution helps to solve long-standing time-to-market challenges. The web based insurance management system expertise and solution can dramatically lessen the cost of policy ownership services. DIFFERENT TYPES OF INSURANCE SOFTWARE Insurance Policy Administration System Insurance policy administration system consists of a mathematical notation that captures the relationship between policies and objects and the entities that manage policies for those objects. The Insurance policy administration system is consisting of a number of policy administration domains. The domains are arranged in a hierarchy, representing descending levels of authority. Claims Management Systems This system ensures claims are processed fast and efficiently. Operator flexibility is the key, and we aim to improver operator productivity while processing claims. Real-time status for quick resubmission and faster reimbursements. Unique claim aging tool shows thousands of claims status in one view. Insurance Claims System uses electronic filing system to primary and secondary payers. Each claim is scrubbed with up-to- date Medicare rules. This Claim Processing System helps in quick resubmission for claim Insurance Agency Management System Insurance Agency Management System facilitates an insurance companys ability to address relationships with its product distribution channels. This system helps in managing current Agencies, can add New Agencies or Delete Current Agencies. Insurance Agency Management System is the solution that delivers to manage and grow your insurance agency to assist day-to-day management of your agency. Agency management utilized for small business, individual or enterprise business Insurance Agent Management System Insurance Agent Management System maintains Multiple Agents from Multiple Agencies, keep the track of their activities from Policy Registration to Claim processing. All their data, their commission, their policies status updates, etc. are taken care by this module. This Insurance system helps in smooth functioning of the Agents working and makes the processes faster and efficient. Policy Management System Policy registration is intended to be a vehicle for the exploration and discussion of policy issues and is aimed in particular at enhancing communication between health policy researchers, legislators, decision-makers, and professionals concerned with developing, implementing, and analyzing health policy. Policy renewals and policy cancellation can be managed by the insurance policy management system User Management System A new user registers by filling in a form on your web-site. If necessary, the new user is first place in a waiting list until you approve the new user. After adding the user, the user can login to the system with his or her username and password to make changes. You can use overviews of users for mailing purposes etc.. User Management System manages all the users of the system i.e. Customer, Administrator or Agents. It keeps the track of thee the activities they performs, their data, their access information, etc. Endorsements Management System Endorsements to a title insurance policy are addenda or attachments to the policy that may correct or modify a previously issued title policy, or alter or modify the provisions of the exceptions, conditions and stipulations of the title policy so that the insured party receives greater coverage than would exist under the terms of the unendorsed title policy. Data import / Export system It handles large amounts of data to import and export it securely. It does processing and management of large and sensitive data compression/decompression and/or encryption/decryption allowing the exchange of data through the network with high performance and stability, exchange of data among Web server(s), business application server(s) and database server(s) and account information including user passwords Policy Registration and Quotations Engine Policy registration is intended to be a vehicle for the exploration and discussion of policy issues and is aimed in particular at enhancing communication between policy researchers, legislators, decision-makers, and professionals concerned with developing, implementing, and analyzing health policy. Policy quotations engine is an on demand quotation management feature coupled with detailed profit optimization and approval management engines. With quotation engine you can automate the sales and services processes that are currently being done using a hybrid of spreadsheets, documents and emails with little to no process control. When you have completed your quotation you can use the engine to seek approvals for non- standard pricing and/or terms and conditions. Discounts and loading management. Insurance Administration Management System Insurance Administration Management system can manage multiple administrators and can have the track of the right assigned to them. It takes care that all the Administrators function with the system as per the rights assigned to them ad they can get their work done in efficient manner. Customizable and strong administration system. Insurance Sales Management can be managed by insurance sales system. Content Management System Module Content Management System is used for managing the capture, storage, security, revision control, retrieval, distribution, preservation and destruction of documents and content. Content Management System especially concerns content imported into or generated from within an organization in the course of its operation, and includes the control of access to this content from outside of the organizations processes. Insurance Document Management System Its important to maintain documents so that you can get to them faster, and easily. Even IT offers document management solutions for easy maintenance of your policies, endorsements, quotes, binders and the like. You can design your templates in common word processing tools, and the document management system will integrate and process these templates to generate and maintain documents. The documents can be retrieved at any time and are indexed in a database for quick searches. Insurance Document Management System is a secure file upload management system with built-in audit tracking, and is a plug-in extension to the Power Central Portal. This System will maintain the generation of the various reports which will be provided to the users as per the requirement. The reports like Modification Report, Policy Management Report, Payments Received Report, Agent commission report, etc. Insurance Accounting and Automation Insurance accounting is quite a complicated task, given the fact that there are so many issues with regulation, taxes, filing, commissions, brokers/underwriters, endorsements etc. We can build applications of insurance accounting systems and insurance billing systems that automate part of this task for you and help build better and more flexible solutions. Workflow solutions Workflow solutions that will ease the task of issuing claims, policies, reimbursements, payments etc. You can enforce hierarchical constraints and automate workflow, thereby ensuring that all your checks and balances are in place. Auditing Insurance is a highly regulated industry, so audit controls are very important. For this purpose, Radix can write audit control solutions customized to your purpose that will help you track and control business issues within your organization Business Intelligence Reporting and charting solutions that will make sense of your data. We can help you analyze your past data for better decision-making and help you make more informed decisions. Online Data Back-up System Online Back-up System is used to have the backed of the data on another server so that in case Original Data get Damage, Lost, etc. then the data is available for work. This system helps in the Real Time Data Backup and maintains the data for the future purpose. It also facilities the data back-up at other Geographical location. The benefit of Online Insurance Management System Online Back-up System is used to have the backed of the data on another server so that in case Original Data get Damage, Lost, etc. then the data is available for work. This system helps in the Real Time Data Backup and maintains the data for the future purpose. It also facilities the data back-up at other Geographical location The benefit of Online Insurance Management System Radix is the right technology choice for the vast majority of insurance-selling organizations on line. We have been closely associated with leading insurance players. Radix is essential for successfully managing and growing your business. Our web based insurance management system can manage your insurance business perfectly. Our solution focus is on the following benefits. Compliance Speed- to-market Cost reduction Web-enablement Consolidation Integration Business process flexibility REFRENCES:- WEB SITES www.licindia.com www.google.co.in/indian insurance industry www.irdaindia.org www.equitymaster.com MAGZINES Life insurance vol 1 ICFAI PRESS 2002 Life insurance vol 2 ICFAI PRESS 2002 Insurance industry Emerging Trends ICFAI PRESS 2002 Insurance law and regulation vol 1ICFAI PRESS 2002 NEWSPAPER Economic times Times of India Business standard BOOKS Life-Insurance , by Mc GILL Insurance Industry by ICFAI Publication Insurance in India

Poverty in Nigeria Essay -- Poverty Essays

Poverty in Nigeria Nigeria is one of the leading oil producing countries in the world. It makes billions of dollars annually, yet the majority of the population lives in poverty. With around 70% of its people living with this problem it is also one of the poorest countries in the world ( Nigeria 's economy dominated by oil ). One of the major contributors to this problem is government. Because the country is well known for its lack of leadership the money made through oil trade is kept by rich benefactors, and the poor are left with nothing. Another major problem that is increasing poverty is Nigeria's population. The amount of people being born is far exceeding the amount of jobs available for them. Due to these two factors the level of poor people living in Nigeria today is staggering. The gap between the rich and the poor is so large that there is almost no inclination of a middle class at all ( Thomas ). If Nigeria wants to get rid of this gap then both the government and the increase in population growth will have to be dealt with. Government is one of the major issues in Nigeria today. Continually corrupted and constantly unstable it accounts for the majority of the problems relating to poverty in the country. With major amounts of money coming in from oil export it would seem logical that the population would see some of the profits, but they don't. Rich benefactors who lead the country take the profits and gain income for themselves. In return they leave costs for improving community life up to the people to deal with. Because of this aid to the public is limited. Health care is non existent, village improvements are unheard of, and the cost for food and other essential materials are increasing. These issues then ... ...r issue that needs to be changed is the population growth in the country. Because of the lack of available jobs, and the amount of people who need work, there are beginning to be conflicts and deaths as a result. Nigeria is a country with mass potential, but nothing is being done to take advantage of it. The country needs many things to establish this gain, but the first step would be a major change in the way the country is ran. If it doesn't change this then the potential that it does have will vanish and the ability to maintain the country will be gone. Citations: Nigeria 's economy dominated by oil . 16 Jan. 2002 . BBC news. 22 Apr. 2005 . Doyle , Mark . Poverty behind Nigeria 's violence . 19 May. 2004. BBC news. 22 Apr. 2005 . Thomas, Saji; Canagarajah ,Sudharshan. Poverty in a wealthy economy: the case of Nigeria . 2002. Eldis. 22 Apr. 2005 . Poverty in Nigeria Essay -- Poverty Essays Poverty in Nigeria Nigeria is one of the leading oil producing countries in the world. It makes billions of dollars annually, yet the majority of the population lives in poverty. With around 70% of its people living with this problem it is also one of the poorest countries in the world ( Nigeria 's economy dominated by oil ). One of the major contributors to this problem is government. Because the country is well known for its lack of leadership the money made through oil trade is kept by rich benefactors, and the poor are left with nothing. Another major problem that is increasing poverty is Nigeria's population. The amount of people being born is far exceeding the amount of jobs available for them. Due to these two factors the level of poor people living in Nigeria today is staggering. The gap between the rich and the poor is so large that there is almost no inclination of a middle class at all ( Thomas ). If Nigeria wants to get rid of this gap then both the government and the increase in population growth will have to be dealt with. Government is one of the major issues in Nigeria today. Continually corrupted and constantly unstable it accounts for the majority of the problems relating to poverty in the country. With major amounts of money coming in from oil export it would seem logical that the population would see some of the profits, but they don't. Rich benefactors who lead the country take the profits and gain income for themselves. In return they leave costs for improving community life up to the people to deal with. Because of this aid to the public is limited. Health care is non existent, village improvements are unheard of, and the cost for food and other essential materials are increasing. These issues then ... ...r issue that needs to be changed is the population growth in the country. Because of the lack of available jobs, and the amount of people who need work, there are beginning to be conflicts and deaths as a result. Nigeria is a country with mass potential, but nothing is being done to take advantage of it. The country needs many things to establish this gain, but the first step would be a major change in the way the country is ran. If it doesn't change this then the potential that it does have will vanish and the ability to maintain the country will be gone. Citations: Nigeria 's economy dominated by oil . 16 Jan. 2002 . BBC news. 22 Apr. 2005 . Doyle , Mark . Poverty behind Nigeria 's violence . 19 May. 2004. BBC news. 22 Apr. 2005 . Thomas, Saji; Canagarajah ,Sudharshan. Poverty in a wealthy economy: the case of Nigeria . 2002. Eldis. 22 Apr. 2005 .

Ethics †Current Events Essay

The issue between the United States accusing China of hacking the Pentagon’s computer network is in a way a violation of the Data Protection Law and international law. For many years the Pentagon has been the subject of cyber intrusion and attempts to penetrate its most kept defense data which if this system will be intruded there would be a possible attempt for an international terrorism. Although the intrusion was only discovered recently according to the US Defense Department it was possible that China has been trying many ways and means to penetrate Pentagon’s database system. The problem here lies not only to the People’s Liberation Army which Pentagon was pointing but China’s Foreign Minister, Jiang Yu is denying the accusations saying his country has no part in the intrusion attempt to the Defense Department’s systems. Fortunately, the US defense system is equipped with the most advance military technology that could detect and tract such intrusion. The Pentagon greatly considers the Chinese People’s Liberation Army in staging such hacking although it did not disclose that Beijing which is China’s seat of Socialism is involved here. Although the US Department of Defense confirmed that the existence of such group could be a small group formed out of the PLA, its intention is anticipated in trying to get information using technological advances (Starr, Todd and Payne). But it is just obvious that even the most highly advanced technology could not stop an ever changing development of computer viruses, spywares and worms to mutate into a more advance and destructive programs. All of these are man-made and unfortunately those people on the other parts of the world are trying to take advantage and could developed these into more powerful and persistent programs so they can merge themselves to the existing programs for destructive purposes. Not only the US is grieving about such violation of international law but even London as well who holds the same position as a powerful country is confirming such an intrusion. Although at this time China is showing its meekness with the present issues, no one can really tell if this is the result of a shadowing another Cold War between the two large countries. The US cannot totally eliminate espionage on its defense system and has a rich history in violation of its secret information. But what causes other personalities or even countries to have an interest to gather information from the US is still unfathomable to the ordinary people. China with its olden years of co-habiting principles with the old Russia has not totally erased its personality as a communist country. Indeed it has grown in terms of its economy because of the free trade but many believe that this was just superficial because China was trying secretly to be another growing superpower in the making. In terms of manpower and number of armies indeed China has not lost its capability to be an independent country. President Bush still wanted to play it safe and could not directly convict China of such intrusion. After all he is trying to build rapport to avoid another international issue that could destroy relationships between nations. On the contrary, the people in the White House are all aware of this issue and are not sleeping with two eyes closed. Fortunately, the incident only happened on the surface attacking the unclassified e-mail in the Defense department before it can penetrate the military’s database. The Pentagon had to shut down its unclassified e-mail for a few weeks although it is not networked to military network that contain confidentialities. No harm done so far and Pentagon officials said none of their operations were disrupted. Not only has Washington is confirming such an assault from the group but even the Britain’s Parliament and the Foreign Office has been hacked according to the Associated Press and Guardian newspaper of London. AP who is keen on making research involving China and international espionage has made a report that the day before the German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s visit to Beijing, the local newspaper Der Spiegel said they found Trojans (spy programs) at the Chancellery computer system. Everybody is not safe even to the extent of breaking laws and bypassing international boundaries. There are only countries that are only moving for their advantage notwithstanding privacy and securities. Indeed, the technology has made a great advancement with great leaps and development. It is only unfortunate that sometimes leaps and bounds are crossing the borders and surmounting other people’s space of confidentiality.

Jay Gatsby the Tragic Hero Essay

The great flaw in Gatsby’s character is his excessive obsession. We find out towards the middle of the book Gatsby is obsessed with Daisy to the point that his life is ‘Daisy’. He throws extravagant parties in hopes her being there. He purchases a palace of a mansion simply because it is close to Daisy’s home. He makes a living only to prove himself worthy to Daisy. He lives for ‘Daisy’, but he does not live for the living Daisy. Gatsby is so infatuated with ‘Daisy’ that he is bent on the magnificent fantasy of a Daisy to which no human can compare. He chooses to remain loyal to the young Daisy of eighteen, who was â€Å"by far the most popular of all the young girls of Louisville†¦dressed in white, and had a little white roadster† (Fitzgerald 72-73). In the words of Fitzgerald: â€Å"No amount of fire or freshness can challenge what a man can store up in his ghostly heart† (93). This is very true, as the real Daisy served no other purpose to Gatsby than to bear a faint resemblance to the fantastical angle he had conjured out of his shattered dreams. Neither Gatsby nor anyone can gain anything from such a delusional happiness. Gatsby has many nemeses in the novel. George Wilson can be considered a nemesis because it is at his hands that Gatsby meets his death. Another rival of Gatsby’s is Tom Buchanan, our protagonist’s adversary in love who also had a hand in the hero’s downfall. In my opinion however, the arch-nemesis of Jay Gatsby is none other than Jay Gatsby. I believe Gatsby’s own actions and flaws in character have brought about his demise. Gatsby was the one who built his entire life gravitating around a single ideal of a girl he once loved. Gatsby was the one who took the initiative to meet Daisy. Gatsby was the one who, having already gained the affections of Daisy, pressed her, on page 126, to testify that she’s never loved Tom. In the words of Daisy, â€Å"you [Gatsby] want too much†¦I can’t help what’s past† (126). Indeed, Gatsby asked for too much, and in return, if not retribution, everything blew up in his face with nothing left b ut a dying dream. Gatsby’s ending in The Great Gatsby was certainly anything but happy. For one thing, he was murdered. On top of that however, lays an even crueller fact. That is, Daisy never called. Gatsby would have died just a little more at ease if he had known that the object of his fascinations for 4 long years  showed any hint of remorse that they may very likely be torn apart. She did not. Gatsby’s soul would have rested easier as well if the person for whom he died showed any sign of sorrow for his departure. She did not. Nor did any of his many acquaintances, save one, turn up to pay respects to the man whose generosity they had often molested. If this is not tragic, what is?Gatsby’s demise is so metaphorical and symbolic that it is hard to pinpoint exact what Fitzgerald was trying to say. Gatsby, a prosperous and extravagant self-made man, was killed by a downtrodden worker of the slums. Could this be alluding to a communist-style revolution? Daisy is quite similar to the American Dream, both being glorious and full of promises to he-who-wins-it. If Gatsby died in trying to get ‘Daisy’, is Fitzgerald denouncing the American Dream? There is, however, evidence that Fitzgerald still believes in the American Dream, as Daisy bears a few dissimilarities to it. That is, Daisy, in principal, is far more superficial, cursory, and lax than the â€Å"white picket fence† American Dream. Could Fitzgerald also have been trying to convey that the Dream has been perverted to such an extent that he-who pursues-it shall fail tragically, just as Gatsby had? The possibilities are endless, but one thing Fitzgerald was trying to express is certain: do not follow in the footsteps of Jay Gatsby, or we too will meet a tragic demise.